Obama’s absence hands floor to China at important Asian summits

Barrack Obama's badly timed shutdown crisis has got in the way of one of the year's most important international summits, the ASEAN summit in Indonesia.

Obama was scheduled to attend the meeting but sent his regrets and Sec of State John Kerry as a stand in, along with a message to Asia-Pacific nations that he's just too busy to be bothered.

The Chinese, planning on sending their Premier, jumped into the gap and sent their president too. President Xi Jinping spoke at Indonesia's parliament, asking for greater cooperation between Asian nations. This was the first time a foreign leader had addressed the democratic country’s Parliament. That sent them a message too, that China is glad to oblige.Link: [link to www.theepochtimes.com]

One newspaper's headline read "Obama’s absence hands floor to China at Asian summits". Well, that just about sums it up, for those who are dim or barely interested.

Voice of America, hopefully speaking in favor of US policy, had to admit the obvious foreign policy blunder on Obama's part, and did. They said:

China Shores Up Regional Deals as Obama Cancels Asia Trip

JAKARTA — With the continuing government shutdown at home, President Barack Obama has canceled his trip to two key Asian meetings, an economic summit in Bali and an East Asia security conference in Brunei, as well as stops in Malaysia and the Philippines. Analysts say the cancellation risks the integrity of the president’s so-called Asia pivot.

Obama’s planned four-nation tour was intended to strengthen America’s economic and military commitment to Southeast Asia....

But while the U.S. president has been consumed by the budget standoff, China’s president has been busy shoring up regional deals.

In a visit to Jakarta this week, Chinese President Xi Jinping signed 23 business agreements valued at $33 billion. In Malaysia on Friday, the Chinese leader agreed to boost bilateral trade to $160 billion by 2017.

************************************* “We are as ignorant of the meaning of the dragon as we are of the meaning of the universe.”-- Jorge Luis Borges~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"Pompey made his preparations for the war at the end of the winter, entered upon it at the commencement of spring, and finished it in the middle of the summer."-- Cicero, De Imperio Cn. Pompei